Plus (formerly Plus.ai), a U.S-based provider of self-driving truck technology, has completed a driverless Level 4 truck demonstration on a highway in China. The driverless semi truck was operated using Plus’s Level 4 autonomous driving technology, without a safety driver, teleoperator, or any other forms of human intervention.
The demonstration was completed on the Wufengshan highway in China’s largest economic centre of Yangtze Delta. The demonstration was conducted with a special permit on the newly built highway, with Plus being the first company to be granted such a permit in China.
During the demonstration, the driverless truck drove safely and smoothly in typical highway traffic.
Plus first demonstrated the company’s first driverless Level 4 heavy truck operation at the Qingdao port in April, 2018.
The company has recently announced a proposed business combination with Hennessy Capital Investment Corp. V (NASDAQ: HCIC).
Shawn Kerrigan, COO and Co-founder of Plus, says: “The driverless demo highlights the ability of our Level 4 autonomous driving technology to enable driverless highway operations in a semi truck. The demo shows the safety, maturity, and functionality of our technology, and we are excited to continue to work closely with our suppliers, fleet customers, and OEM partners to further develop, test, and refine a driverless product for commercial deployment.”
Headquartered in Silicon Valley and founded in 2016, Plus is developing low-cost, high-performance full-stack Level 4 autonomous driving technology to make long-haul trucking safer, more efficient, and more sustainable.
Mass production and global deployment of its driver-in autonomous driving technology, which reduces fuel consumption by an estimated 10% compared to a traditional truck, is planned to start in the second half of 2021.
Keyword: Plus Completes Driverless Level 4 Semi Truck Highway Demonstration in China